Georgian officials congratulate Ukrainian women on Int’l Women's Day

Georgian officials extended their congratulations on International Women’s Day to people in Ukraine as well as Ukrainian women in Georgia on Tuesday, calling the sharing of messages “emotionally exciting” on the backdrop of Russia’s continued invasion of Ukraine.

Officials from the Georgian National Tourism Administration, MPs and Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili were among those who congratulated Ukrainian citizens stranded in Georgia due to the outbreak of  conflict in their country on the date.

Papunashvili, Deputy Head of the Government Administration Tamaz Iorashvili and a group of MPs visited Ukrainian women tourists at hotels and gave them symbolic presents, while also reaffirming Georgia’s strong support for Ukraine in its resistance to the invasion.

Officials from the Georgian National Tourism Administration, MPs and Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili were among those who congratulated Ukrainian women on the date. Photo: Shalva Papuashvili/Facebook

The Parliament Speaker said it was “very difficult [for the women to mark the date] away from their loved ones, but we still tried to make the day a bit more beautiful for them, sharing emotions and expressing our support.”

It is an emotionally exciting day. During this difficult time […] we wanted to make this day more beautiful for women and girls. We tried to reaffirm our support for our friend nation, both spiritually and materially, in order to alleviate [for them] this difficult period. We will do our best to help them,” Khatia Tsilosani, the ruling Georgian Dream party MP, added.

Since the outbreak of hostilities in Ukraine, the Georgian Government has offered to cover accommodation and food costs of Ukrainian citizens who had arrived in Georgia between February 1-23 and were stranded in the country by the conflict.

Ukrainian women facing the effects of the conflict were also in the focus of a message by Antonio Guterres, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, on International Women’s Day. In his statement, Guterres said “in countries enduring conflict - as we see in Ukraine - women and girls are the most vulnerable but also the most compelling voices for peace.”

The United Nations representation in Georgia, as well as offices of the Delegation of the European Union and the Council of Europe, along with dozens of embassies, have issued a joint statement congratulating women and girls and highlighting they were impacted “differently and disproportionately” by the war in Ukraine.

While frontline soldiers and military personnel […] are risking their lives and families are torn apart, women and girls are impacted differently and disproportionately by war and conflict. [...] Here as everywhere, women are at the forefront of the humanitarian response. We must ensure that the specific needs and the health, rights and dignity of women and girls are safeguarded now and going forward,” the statement reads.

Russia began its military assault on Ukraine last week, following President Putin’s announcement of the recognition of the independence of the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Luhansk on February 21.